Monticello: A Fictional Narrative

She stayed hushed, dumbfounded, and overall hurt; she let him walk out on her without a word.

I immediately rushed to the hospital to see if god had spared my Jacks. I was so confused about everything. I prayed over and over again that I wouldn’t hear the worst. My stomach was in knots, I felt like I was going to throw up at anytime. I drove with a heavy heart. If she was okay and I could get her back, I planned to redeem myself and spend the rest of my life with her. I debated whether or not I should tell her about cheating on her after the fight but I didn’t want to hurt her more. I’d have to think about it. As I walked in the building, there was a nurse in the entrance talking. I overheard her talking about a woman who was in an accident and I thought she was referring to Jackie but then she said the baby would be fine. I knew then, it wasn’t Jacks. I then approached the receptionist in hopes that she would tell me what I needed to hear.

“Can I help you, sir?” She said in such a professional voice.

“Yes. I am here for Jackie Monticello. Is she okay? Where is she?” My voice came off frantic.
“Relax, sir.” She took a long pause. “Oh Ms. Monticello, she is in the ICU, that’s on the fifth floor. You can wait for her up there but she can’t have visitors yet. I’ll notify the doctor you are here. You’re the boyfriend right?” She seemed way too friendly to deal with people in my situation.
“Yes, can you just tell me if she is okay?” I grew impatient with her.
“Sir, I’m not allowed to release information. The doctor will explain

everything.”

Realizing I was going to get no useful information from her I headed up to the fifth floor where I found the doctor waiting for me. I guess the receptionist was a little help after all.

“Hi, you must be Jermaine?” His voice was deep.
“Yes, sir. How is she?” His tone made me assume it was the worst.
“Step in here please.” We then went into a nearby room that had nothing in it other than some boxes.
“ Well Mr. Nilsson, there is good news and bad news. Ms. Monticello is going to be okay, she has a few minor sprains, a broken arm, and a serious concussion but she should be coming to, soon. She is very fortunate to get in such a nasty accident and only walk away with a few, minor injuries. However, she is being admitted so we can keep an eye on her head for a few days but your family should be just fine.” He gave me a light-hearted, brief smile.
Oh thank god. That was just what I needed to hear, the uncertainty was making me psychotic, I was so relieved. I thought about a million things I was going to do with her when we got out of here. Then it hit me, I don’t know what’s going to happen when we got out of here, especially after I tell her about my little ‘goodbye’ fling. Maybe I just wouldn’t tell her. No, I better, I've already learned that lesson. It would just have to be at the right time when I decide to tell her.

A few days have gone by now and things are back to normal; well almost. Jacks has been somewhat secluded from me but I think she is trying to accept what happened and move on. We haven’t really talked about us and what we are going to do yet. We’ve only been focused on getting her better and it’s worked so far because she’s being released today. I brought up the car to the door and helped her get in. She was so happy to go home, I could tell.

After we got into the house and I helped her get comfortable then I began to cook some Lasagna. We sat on the couch and ate dinner while we goofed off. She took one bite of my Lasagna and bolted to the bathroom. I was slightly offended because I thought it was really good, for me rarely cooking anyway; I was just trying to take care of her. I brushed it off, made a joke of it then went to get a hair tie for her.

“Babe is my food really that bad?” I chuckled lightly.
“No, love I’m sorry. It’s good. Give me a second to clean up will you? I can do it myself.”
“Alright baby, let me know if you need anything.” I handed her the hair tie and went back to the living room. A few minutes passed by and she came back out. She laid in my lap and stared directly at me.
“You brushed your teeth right?” I laughed at her a bit.

She giggled a bit and nodded yes towards me. Then she turned over and things got silent for a moment. She turned to where her back was flat, pressed against my thighs. She looked at my eyes directly and I noticed hers began to water ever-so-slightly.

“I have something to tell you.” Her voice was shaky.
“What is it princess?” I became a little paranoid.
“Well for starters, I’m pregnant. And I know that you were cheating on me when I got in the wreck…. She told me everything. What you guys did. How you left her. Everything.” She was so calm when she spoke.
“Baby, I was going to tell you, I swear. And we’re pregnant, that’s great!”
“No, no, no love. I’m pregnant. I’ve made up my mind, and I’m not staying with you. Maybe after you mature a little we can discuss it but I’m not staying with you just because this baby. I’m also not going to keep you from your child. I’m not going to fight with you. We can still live together and everything, the only thing changing is our status. I’m sure we will remain close but I refuse to be with a man who is unfaithful to me. I want you to know that I forgive you and we will figure it out along the way.”

I grew quite bashful, I knew I had been in the wrong but what she said was preposterous. Why bring a beautiful baby into the world if it would be introduced to a broken home? And “be her friend,” How could I? I was in love with her it would be unattainable. I remember growing up without any parents, going through foster home after foster home with no stability. All I ever wanted was to be apart of a family, have two parents who were in love. How could I deprive my unborn child of that happiness? I just couldn’t do it. I got up from the couch without a word and went to the room. I grabbed my pipe, lit the bowl and inhaled deeply.